More than 1,000,000 children and adults live with disabilities in Haiti

More than 1,000,000 children and adults live with disabilities in Haiti

You can help at least one.... to live a better life.

You can help at least one.... to live a better life.

You can help at least one.... to live a better life.

Independent Living Program, adapting homes to improve lives.

Welcome to FONHARE!

The Haitian Foundation of Rehabilitation (FONHARE) is a grassroots Haitian non-profit organization dedicated to providing integrated physical and cognitive rehabilitation services to children and youth with disabilities in Haiti, especially those with a poor quality of life living with limited resources regardless their socioeconomic condition. FONHARE is the only organization providing rehab services in the northeast of Haiti to 13 cities with almost 500,000 citizens.

FONHARE Inc. is a tax exempt, charitable, non-profit with 501(c)3 U.S. status, non-governmental. All donations are fully federal tax deductible and are acknowledged with a receipt. Our Board administration is completely volunteer and 100% of your donation is dedicated to serve the disabled children and adults in Haiti.

The earthquake of January 12, 2010 tragically struck Haitian families, especially those most vulnerable, with the poorest being the primary victims. In addition to the 300,000 deaths caused by the quake, more than 280,000 were injured, including 4000 amputations and 200 Spinal Cord Injuries, taking a huge toll on human life. Today there are thousands of children, youth and adults who are surviving critical situations with physical and emotional disabilities in Haiti, a country that does not have adequate rehabilitation services to assist the affected population. In addition to living with disabilities, these people have been deprived of material and economic resources because of the devastating earthquake. Before the earthquake there were 800,000 people with disabilities in Haiti. The earthquake aggravated these numbers.

We seek financial and volunteer support to help us accomplish our goals of improving the quality of life of people with disabilities in Haiti, increasing their independence, reintegrating them into society, and transferring technical and medical knowledge and services needed to enable Haitians to help themselves.

In this website you will find information about people with disabilities in Haiti, our programs and services, our activities, ways to volunteer, to sponsor, to donate and to joins us as a regular partner.

In less than 15 minutes you can enjoy the noble work of the Haitian Foundation of Rehabilitation (FONHARE) improving the quality of life for children, youth and adults with disabilities in Haiti.

For its beneficiaries, FONHARE is “an oasis in the desert”
Please just take a few minutes to watch this documentary!

There are many things that you would like to do in the world but you cannot by your own hands, it is important to know that FONHARE is your right choice for extending your hands to the most vulnerable people in Haiti that your heart would like to help. Any small contribution will be very useful !!!!

October 13, is the International Day for Natural Disaster and Risk Reduction

This year the focus of the International Day for Disaster Reduction (October 13,2013) is on some one billion people around the world who live with some form of disability. Representing one-fifth of the world’s population, persons living with disabilities have unique contributions, often overlooked, to help reduce the risk of disasters and build resilient societies and communities.

Persons living with disabilities are among the most excluded in society, and their plight is magnified when a disaster strikes. Not only are they less likely to receive the aid they need during a humanitarian crisis, they are also less likely to recover in the long-term.

To commemorate this special date FONHARE organized a meeting with participation of people who live with some form of disabilities, NGOs and Government Officers in the Northeast region of Haiti.

The goals were:

To analyse the current living condition of people with disabilities in our region. How can they survive in case of disasters?

To provide prevention methods of naturals disasters and risks for people with disabilities.

To create awareness about the integration of people with disabilities in decision maker for reduction of risk and naturals disasters.

FONHARE is involved in advocacy work to ensure people with disabilities are included in and participate in risk management policies and initiatives around the country.

A disabled child has been marginalized, discriminated, not attending school; her rights as child were violated; her family did not have resources to help for her condition; her parents were very worried about her development. One day FONHARE saw her and changed her life, now she is full integrated enjoying the same rights like all children and she is attending to school!

Through this, FONHARE works to improve the quality of life of children and women with disabilities to be more independent as possible to facilitate their integration, participation and inclusion into society to live their full potential (physical, mental), allowing them full motor and mental development throughout their life accordance to the law of their human dignity.

To achieve this we do the following:

Provide home assessments for accessibility and functional issues and make recommendations to the family.

Assist with financial and instructional support to adapt the home and work environment however is needed.

Form community associations made up of local people who can organize assistance and provide the materials and labor to make homes and businesses accessible, as well as promote integration in the community.

Advocate for inclusion in the education system, employment and religious sectors by communication with these sectors.

FONHARE WORKS TO BETTER THE LIVES OF DISABLED CHILDREN WHILE MAXIMIZING THEIR POTENTIAL TO OVERCOME ALL BOUNDARIES. HERE’S THE CASE OF “MOISE” A CHILD OF 1 YEAR 3 MONTHS OLD HE WAS BORN WITH DEFORMITIES IN HIS RIGHT LEG FOR THAT HE WAS AMPUTATED. FONHARE PROVIDED HIM A PROSTHETIC TRAINS HIM TO WALK AND SOCIALIZE WITH THE OTHERS KIDS.

When you volunteer in FONHARE, you also have the opportunity to make INTERN TOURIST visiting historical heritage of the country, in the northern of Haiti there are many historical monuments to visit and also the most beautiful and virgin beaches in the Caribbean are located in the North of Haiti. That’s mean when you come to FONHARE you can enjoy your vacation and learn our culture and how beautiful is Haiti.

You also can do it, in FONHARE you can mix work and vacation, that’s mean clinic work from Monday to Friday and vacation on weekend. Don’t think it more just come to see! In FONHARE you help disabled people to get better life and you relax yourself. The Haitian expression says: “ kill two birds in one shot” (Touye de swazo yon sel kou).

Volunteers support FONHARE CLINIC working with direct patients to help us accomplish our goals of improving the quality of life of kids, youth and adults living with disabilities in Haiti. There is great needs for Physical Therapists, Occupational Therapists, Speech and Language Pathologist, Physician (PM&R) and Project Management at FONHARE.

You also can be involved helping people with disabilities in Haiti to get a better life. FONHARE is waiting for you, : )

Our Rehabilitation facility is located in a safe area where our volunteers work in a very safe environment.

On April 18, 2013 The Haitian Foundation of Rehabilitation FONHARE realized a Wheelchair Distribution where 25 persons with physical disabilities from different cities in the Northeast of Haiti received a wheelchair to improve their mobility, independence for the activity of daily living and quality of life.

This wheelchair distribution was realized by the support of Walkabout Foundation, so those people are very thankful for your help dear Walkabout Foundation!